Solar project to progress

The company behind a solar energy project in Dubbo says it hopes to have the plant and photovoltaic panels installed by the middle of next year.

Red Sky Energy, which bought out the Solier company last year, has secured a 30 year lease for 25 hectares of land near the Boothenba Road sewerage treatment facility.

It plans to build a two-point-five megawatt plant, enough to power 2,000 homes and will develop land into parcels for solar generation, that will be sold to investors.

The managing director Rowan Gillespie says a feasibility study on the four million dollar development has proved it will be viable.

"We've been trying to keep our cost down to a point where we're competitive with wind and we've now got to a point where we are competitive with wind and also that we think we've got sufficient returns to attract investors," he said.

Mr Gillespie says he hopes the facility will be built within the next 18 months.

"We're looking to have the first model of the project installed by mid year which will pave the way for all the funding to be put in place for the project and built through the remainder of the 2013/2014 financial year."